Burlington in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Burlington sees average daytime highs around 0°C and overnight lows near -6°C, with 195 mm of precipitation over about 30 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Over the season highs ease from about 4°C in early December to 1°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 11% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

Winter is Burlington's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Burlington's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
0°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
-6°C
Precipitation
195 mm
30 wet days
Avg wind
17 km/h
Travel score
0.0
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Burlington in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs ease from about 4°C in early December to 1°C by late February.

A typical winter day in Burlington reaches about 0°C and drops to -6°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest February.

-20°-10°10°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Burlington

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 90 that feel at or below 0°C.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
90
66 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Burlington weather by month

How the three winter months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-1° / -7°70118.59.20.0
Feb-0° / -7°558.66.610.20.0
Mar / -3°659.64.911.60.2
Apr10° / 8911.3213.22.3
May16° / 8111014.55.0
Jun22° / 14°8211.3015.26.5
Jul25° / 18°7410.1014.96.8
Aug25° / 17°669.4013.87.1
Sep21° / 13°759.2012.36.6
Oct14° / 8311.10.110.84.0
Nov / 7710.22.69.51.0
Dec / -3°7010.56.38.80.0

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 11% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

Burlington gets around 195 mm of rain and snow over 30 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%50%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Winter

Winds average 17 km/h across winter.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 hours in early December to 10 h 48 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Winter

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 1.9 kWh/m².

01234DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Burlington?

Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

0.0
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Burlington.

What to pack for Burlington in Winter

From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In winter, Burlington sees daytime highs around 0°C and nights near -6°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 30 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Burlington in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 4°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 17 km away) is warmest in August at about 21°C and coldest in February near 3°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jul 22 to Sep 1 — about 1.4 months when the water holds above 20°C.

0°10°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarm
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan4Bracing
Feb3Bracing
Mar3Bracing
Apr4Bracing
May8Bracing
Jun15Cool
Jul20Cool
Aug21Refreshing
Sep19Cool
Oct13Bracing
Nov8Bracing
Dec5Bracing

UV index in Burlington in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Burlington peaks around June 22 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJun 22UV 8Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5High
May6High
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug7High
Sep5High
Oct3Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low
Location & terrain

Where is Burlington?

Burlington sits at 43.4°N, 79.8°W, 165 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Waterdown, 7.0 km away.

Topography around Burlington

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Burlington.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Burlington has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 181 m around an average of 189 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 290 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 457 m.

The land around Burlington is covered by trees (37%), artificial surfaces (28%) and grassland (23%) within 3 km, trees (32%) and water (20%) within 16 km, and cropland (33%), trees (24%) and water (23%) within 80 km.

3 km
181 m
16 km
290 m
80 km
457 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Waterdown 7.0 km · Oakville 14 km · Milton 15 km · Hamilton 15 km · Stoney Creek 20 km · Ancaster 22 km · Mississauga 26 km · Halton Hills 29 km

Canada travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 83% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$55,698
2025
Happiness
6.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
97%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
5.3
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Christian 53%none 35%Muslim 5%Hindu 2%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Burlington (43.3862°, -79.8371°, elevation 165 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.